Liberté
by Delphi913
Summary: Akira could no longer remember a time where she wasn't trapped by the expectations of others. Perhaps with this new family forming around her, she could finally get a taste at what true freedom is like. UPDATE: Now crossposted on AO3!
1. The New Cage

**A/N: I'm going to say right off the bat: this is something I was occasionally writing in my downtime, so don't expect frequent updates. I've still got other projects I'd like to make progress with before moving forward with this one too.**

 **Disclaimer: SMT and the Persona series is the property of Atlus**

"Speech" / _'Thoughts'_

The shaking of the train is what jerked her awake, drawing her weary consciousness back to reality. It took her a moment to remember where she was, her vision slowly refocusing as she wiped a bit of drool spilling over her chin.

Out the window was the unfamiliar cityscape of Tokyo's Yongen-Jaya ward, somehow looking even more crowded than Nagano's capital. She stared out at it blankly.

' _So, this is my new home for the year?'_

When the train pulled into the station, she quickly departed, rising up the steps to the tight city streets above. Compared to her neighborhood in Ueda, this was a veritable labyrinth, and given that her guardian hadn't given specific directions on how to reach his address, she ended up stumbling around for a while. There were people in the surrounding area, including a police officer, that she could have asked for directions, however she didn't exactly feel inclined to address locals who barely seemed to acknowledge her existence nor did she trust the law at this point. For all she knew, her parole officer had told the police in the area to make sure she didn't pull any stunts. As irritating as it was, she would stick it out on her own.

Eventually, she discovered his house down a back alley, though it appeared to be uninhabited as there was no response to her ringing the doorbell. Thankfully, the solution to her problem materialized almost immediately.

"You have business with Sakura-san?" a voice asked, not unkindly.

She turned to see a delivery driver standing beside her, holding a package under his arm. He was looking directly at her, a welcome change of pace, with a strange expression on his face. Probably wasn't expecting someone as young as her to be dropping by to see someone his age, if she had to guess.

"I do," she replied simply. "It looks like he isn't home, though."

Looking at the house, he told her, "Yeah, he's usually not around this time of day. Try Café LeBlanc; just walk back down the alley and take two lefts. You should see it right there."

Grateful to finally be released from her predicament, she bowed her head slightly. "Thank you, sir."

"Eh? Don't mention it." He placed the package on the ground just outside the gate to the house. "Though, could you do me a favor? Remind him to mail in his confirmation form for the PC this time. Last time he forgot and caused a big hassle."

Not seeing a reason to deny the man, she nodded to him before making her exit.

Café LeBlanc, as it turned out, was one of those retro-y establishments that tried to make you feel like you were back in the 50s or something. One step inside and she could see that from the booth and counter setup, resembling that of an old diner. Of course, this was quickly contested by the warm, rich smell of coffee beans and coffee brewing out in the open in pot-burners right on top of the counter. It was a quaint but surprisingly comfortable atmosphere in here. Despite the poor location, she could easily see how Sakura could keep getting customers.

There were three people in the shop: an aproned man leaning against the counter while reading a newspaper, which she could only assume was Sakura himself, and an old couple sitting in the first booth while listening intently to a news program playing on the television hanging on a wall towards the back.

"... operator underwent a sudden Mental Shutdown, causing the train to crash, injuring dozens and damaging the subway system. Until repairs can be made, there will be severe delays across the board. This is just the latest in a series of…"

"Dreadful business," the elder woman said, breaking the silence. "I hear recently people have been having sudden breakdowns and shutdowns while driving too."

"Just the other day, I heard there was an accident on the highway. There were dozens injured and traffic was backed up several kilometers," her husband added thoughtfully.

"Just dreadful," the woman repeated. " I just hope nothing of the sort happens around here, don't you Sakura-san?"

"Hmm..?" The bearded man mused, looking up from his newspaper. "Sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

So he was Sakura, after all. He was a tall man who looked to be in his late thirties or early forties. He had somewhat wizened features topped with glasses and finely-combed dark hair. He was quite handsome for his age, she had to admit, even if he reminded her somewhat of her own father. His manner could probably use some work, though, given how the elder woman just sighed.

It wasn't until the couple had gotten up, thanked him for the coffee, and left that he noticed her standing there.

"Huh? Oh, I guess they did say that was today," Sakura mumbled offhandedly, as if she wasn't even there.

It should have hurt worse than it did, dispelling any illusions as to what her situation was, but frankly after being stuck in Juvenile for the past few months, she just felt hollow. His words were nothing more than a light rattle in the pit of her.

"So you're Kurusu-kun's daughter," he continued, addressing her directly this time. "Akira, right?"

"Yes," Akira replied politely, bowing her head. "Thank you for taking care of me."

"Hmm…" the bespectacled man grumbled. "At least you have manners."

"I'm Sojiro Sakura," he introduced himself. "I'll have custody over you for the next year."

Walking to the back of the shop, he nodded toward a set of stairs leading up to the attic. She hesitated for a moment before following behind him.

"This is where you'll be staying."

' _Why here and not his house?'_ the thought briefly crossed her mind before she banished it. The reason didn't matter; he was giving her a home and questioning him would only bring her trouble.

The attic itself was a sight to behold. Half of it was filled with supplies and old junk, making it completely inaccessible. The other half, which was presumably supposed to be her living space, was mostly empty save for a bed, an overstuffed bookshelf, a desk covered by a mesh tarp with more books underneath, and a bunch of boxes, one of which her parents had sent from home. All of that was to be expected, though.

What surprised her was the dust, grime, and cobwebs covering every inch of the place. It felt like she couldn't see a single surface uncovered by dirt.

"You look like you want to say something." she heard him say, rattling the pit of her stomach once again. Had she looked disgusted, ungrateful at her new surroundings? The young girl certainly hoped not; it wouldn't serve her well to get off on the wrong foot already.

"It's… spacious," Akira not-so-smoothly covered.

The old man didn't look convinced, but thankfully decided not to comment.

"Most of the garbage has been cleared out. You'll have to handle the cleaning yourself. I have some supplies in the closet downstairs."

He looked as if he was about to say more, but suddenly a bell rang from downstairs, catching their attention. Turning, he headed back towards the railing.

"I'm still in business for a few more hours, and we'll talk when they're over. You might as well get to work now. It's not like there's anything else for you to do."

Without another word, he headed downstairs.

Looking back at the room, it wasn't really much of an option. Cracking open the box in the middle of the floor, she changed out of her school uniform and slipped into the rattiest clothing she could find before taking his advice.

* * *

After a few hours spent scrubbing, dusting, sweeping, and generally wiping down any surface she could see with her eyes, the room looked at least somewhat presentable. There was still piles of books covering the shelves and desk and a bunch of random assorted junk in the corner, but she was too tired to deal with it right now. Judging by the fact that light was no longer streaming through the windows and she'd had to turn on the overhead lamp just to see anything, it was some time in the evening.

Almost as if on cue, Sakura came up the stairs, probably seeking to appraise her work. Without saying a word, the man took two looks at her and began collecting the various dirty rags and other cleaning supplies that were strewn about. She tried to pitch in, but he just waved her off. Not wanting to upset him, she stood by while he carried it all downstairs.

Upon returning, he finally gave her his thoughts. "Not bad. Could still use some sprucing up, but it looks more like a room at least."

"I did my best," Akira sighed out.

"I can see that," he said, "Now, we need to talk."

Again, rattling, rattling, rattling. She wasn't exactly looking forward to this, but she had to get it over with eventually.

"So, from what I understand, you got in between a man trying to force himself on some woman. He fell over and hit his head on the concrete but pinned it on you as assault."

The girl nodded blankly. That's about the gist of what happened or at least what she remembered of it. That night was… everything had happened so fast it was all a blur.

"That's what happens when you stick your nose into a matter between two adults. You're lucky a lawsuit is all you ended up with."

She'd heard the exact same lines from her parents of course, and the authorities, and just about everyone in her hometown. The world just wouldn't miss an opportunity to remind her of how stupid she'd been. But it's not like there was anything the tired teenager could do but sit there and take it all. Especially from her only chance to avoid jail.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a hand on her shoulder. All of a sudden he was looking directly at her with a serious expression.

"Listen, if you run into something like that again, find a police officer. There's no sense in you getting involved in a crime if there's nothing you can do. Understand?"

Her eyes widened at that. No one had attempted to offer her advice in all the ridicule she'd faced, not even her parents. Not knowing how to deal with this, Akira simply offered a small, hesitant nod in return.

The elder man seemed to find this an acceptable answer and released her. "Good. Now, get some rest. We'll go over your living arrangements tomorrow morning before I have to take you to prison."

She could physically feel herself blanch, skin crawling in terror. "Wh-Where?" she choked out quietly, barely hiding her panic.

"Shujin Academy. Did you already forget?" Sakura looked at her, concerned and somewhat annoyed. "Are you feeling alright?"

Akira felt incredibly foolish. When she'd received the letter from the school for the first time, she'd thought it'd been a cruel joke someone had played on her. She shouldn't have been so easily caught, especially now.

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she quickly replied, "Yes, sorry. I just misheard you."

With a sigh and a shake of his head, he started back for the stairs before suddenly stopping and turning back.

"Before I forget, you're supposed to keep a record of your daily activities," he said, producing a notebook from behind his apron. "I have to check it around the beginning of every month so you better remember to write in it."

Once she took it from his hands, he descended to the lower floor, gone from her sight. She could hear him moving around down there and a bell-ringing as he left her alone in the shop. Sighing, she collapsed onto the bed.

' _So, this is my life now, huh?'_ she thought, letting her body relax into the cushy mattress. It was better than being stuck in juvie, but even if she wasn't really locked away in a cell, it didn't feel all that much different for the moment. _'At least it has a nicer warden…'_

Feeling beaten down, she rolled over on her back. Scribbling a quick entry in the notebook, she set it off to the side and decided to check her phone for messages. Maybe her parents had actually disentangled themselves from their constant fighting to actually leave one. Her eyes were instead greeted with a strange app she'd never seen before and certainly had never downloaded.

The icon was red and black, with a strange eye-looking emblem, and it seemed to send ripples across the entire screen. _'Spam.'_ her mind instantly jumped to that conclusion and she deleted it with a quick swipe. It wasn't exactly an uncommon occurrence, but it did strike her as strange that there weren't any other adverse effects brought on by the app. Usually these things gave your phone or computer a nasty virus or tried to steal all your data.

Flipping through, she saw a single message from her mother, asking if she'd arrived safely. To that, she could only give a sad smile. Her mother had been the one to get her this spot in the first place. Apparently, she had known Sakura by reputation during her college days and one of her best friends from Tokyo still stopped by the cafe from time to time. Her mother always cared even if fighting with her father took more of her time.

Akira shook her head. Thinking about the past was only going to depress her more.

She sent a quick reply and then pulled the covers over herself and turned out the lights. Within moments she was asleep.

 _Journal entry 4/9/2016:_

 _Today, I moved in with my new caretaker, Sojiro Sakura. He's kinder than I was expecting even if I'm living in his cafe instead of his house and acts as if he doesn't notice me sometimes. I hope he'll realize soon that I'm not trying to cause any trouble and lighten up._

 _The only other important thing that happened is that I cleaned my room. It was full of dirt and now it isn't. I'm not sure what I'm actually supposed to put here._

 _Signed: Akira Kurusu_

 **A/N: So yeah, for anyone wondering about the dialogue, I'm not going to recycle to game dialogue verbatim cause you could just play the game. I'm either going to do variations based on memory like this chapter or I'm going to try and clean up the script a bit while keeping the character's voices intact. Cause the english translation of Persona 5, while not a mess, was very messy.**

 **Either way, exciting things I have planned ahead. God only knows if I'll reach them. When I do continue this in some capacity, I'm probably going to end up jumping around rather than covering every little thing, and I'm undecided on whether to cover all the Confidant meetings as of yet.**

 **Thanks for reading. I know this wasn't a very interesting first chapter, but hopefully, I can get you a better one soon.**


	2. Introductions

**Disclaimer: SMT and the Persona series is the property of Atlus**

"Speech" / _'Thoughts'_

*chink* *chink*

The sound of chains clattering against each other roused Akira from her slumber. Blinking the sleep from her eyes, unease set in. This was definitely not the attic of LeBlanc where she'd gone to sleep. There wasn't so much… blue where she'd previously been.

Lifting her body, she became acutely aware that her wrists were now bound by a large pair of shackles. Not only that but she her work clothes had been replaced black and white striped prison uniform. Honestly, she would have been hyperventilating by now were it not for the cartoonish nature of it all. Swiveling into a sitting position, she could even see a giant iron ball chained to her ankle, as if she were stuck in a child's vision of what a prison actually was.

' _But I've seen the real thing,'_ she thought to herself, that hollow feeling in her stomach returning in spades. _'There's no comparison…'_

Looking around the room, she could see it was a cramped cell with the basic amenities: bed and toilet. Mysteriously, the walls were padded with blue velvet and the floor was made of brick with a blue hue shining over it. There was a soothing piano piece playing from some indefinable location, with an operatic singer accompanying.

Having little else to do, she got up from the bed and approached the bars through which light was shining. What immediately greeted her vision was… a little boy? No, it was actually a young boy and a young girl, from what she could tell, who, proportions aside, looked quite similar to each other. Both were garbed in blue and black warden's uniforms with matching caps, though the boy wore pants and the girl shorts, and both had pale skin, white hair, and yellow eyes. The most prominent differences she could spot between the two was that the male half, who wore his lengthy hair down, wore an opaque monocle over his left eye and held a clipboard under his arm while his female partner, who had her hair tied up in a braid hanging loosely over her shoulder, wore an eyepatch over her right eye and wielded a baton. The pair regarded the imprisoned girl for a moment, expressions unreadable, before standing aside to reveal an even stranger sight.

In the center of the the circular prison chamber sat a wooden desk occupied by a thin-limbed and well-dressed, elderly man who was squat in proportion with the exception of his pointed ears and hooked nose which were unnaturally long. He honestly reminded her of a puppet more than a man. With bloodshot eyes, he gave her a smile which, despite its pleasant intent, still managed to send shivers down her spine. Somehow, this man seemed right at home here and yet completely out of place at the same time.

"Trickster… Welcome to my Velvet Room," he spoke in an unfittingly deep voice, making Akira jump.

"Trickster?" The girl questioned. "What are you-?"

A baton slamming against the bars promptly shut her up. "Silence, Inmate!" her female guard shouted at her, eyes full of fire. "The master will explain, so listen up!"

"I am pleased to make your acquaintance. So rarely is our presence graced by guests," the impish-looking man continued as if his servant's outburst had never occured. "You see, this is a place that exists between dream and reality, mind and matter, and only those bound by the words of a 'contract' may enter.

"The you in reality is still fast asleep in your bed," the male guard explained in a calm manner. "Only your cognitive self, your ego, materializes here."

Holding a gloved hand against himself, the oddly-proportioned man in the center of the room smiled at her again. "I am Igor, master of this place. You'd do well to remember it."

' _What does any of this have to do with me?'_ she would have asked if not for risk of incurring the ire of the young girl with the braided hair once again.

"I must say, I'm surprised," Igor mused, looking around the place. "This room reflects the state of your own heart. To think that it would take the guise of a prison… A heavy burden rests on your shoulders, indeed."

' _This is what my heart looks like…?'_ Akira wondered, taking it all in. How fitting it was to the point where she could almost laugh. Being locked alone in a room for the rest of her life, her current greatest fear, made manifest before her.

"I know that already," the prisoner of fate spoke absentmindedly, eyes falling to the ground. "If I speak or act out of turn, I'll be sent back to prison. I'm just a teenager, a high school student, so no one will listen to me if I speak out. I have no choice but to keep my head down until the end of the year.

"That is what you have been led to believe, of course," the puppet man answered, chuckling lightly. "But what if you had the chance to defy fate? What if you could escape from this place and the chains of authority which bind you here?"

Almost instantly her eyes darted back up. "How can I do that?"

"I'm glad to see you're eager," he let out with a laugh of satisfaction. "There is only one method to oppose the fate of ruin which awaits you. You must be 'rehabilitated.' Rehabilitated towards freedom.

"Do you hold within you the resolve to challenge the distortions of this world?"

As much as she was eager to bust out of the cage she was in, there was every chance this offer could be another trap. If it was even happening at all. She still wasn't entirely clear on that.

"What do you mean by distortions?"

"You will learn in time, should you accept this deal. I can say no more for the moment."

"You must present your answer now or the path to freedom will be lost to you, I'm afraid," the male warden spoke, looking truly apologetic.

"What are you waiting for? Hurry up and make a decision already!" the female warden raised her voice impatiently, rapidly tapping her foot on the ground.

' _A one-time offer, huh?'_ Akira thought, mentally sighing. It was very much against her better judgement to accept something this vague, but she was hard-pressed to imagine how this could possibly make her situation any worse.

"I'll do it," she spoke the words.

"Most excellent," Igor replied, looking pleased. "We will, of course, be observing you along the path of your rehabilitation. Allow me to introduce my assistants."

"On your left is Gabriel and on your right is Rosette," the puppet man elucidated, gesturing to the boy then the girl. "Their role shall come into play soon. Most likely when next we meet.

"There's a punishment waiting for you, if you fail to meet Master's expectations," Rosette taunted with a sneer.

"Should you remain in line, we can provide you with protection and aid against the upcoming threats you must face," Gabriel politely elaborated.

' _Threats? Wait, what does that-?'_

"I'm afraid the time for you to wake has come already," Igor said in a lamenting tone, brushing her thoughts aside. "Take your time and slowly come to understand your new circumstances. We will meet again soon. Of that you can rest assured."

A bell began to ring loudly in the background, downing out the music somewhat.

"Your time here's up. Go on back to sleep,"Rosette instructed, lightly tapping the bars with her baton.

"Wait! I still have-"

* * *

She jerked awake only to find herself in an unfamiliar room.

' _Wait, where am I?'_

Throwing her glasses on, she darted her eyes back and forth across the room, taking in the increasingly recognizable sights.

' _Oh, right. Leblanc's attic,'_ the young girl thought, letting out a brief sigh of relief.

It was going to be a while before she could feel comfortable waking up here, it seemed. Checking her phone, she saw that it was still an hour and a half or so before the school would open. Since Sakura wanted to talk to her before they left, she decided to rise and get dressed.

Black jacket buttoned to the top, white undershirt tucked properly, plaid skirt held straight, suspenders clipped in the right places, simple black tights with the seams out of sight, and shiny shoes unmarked or scuffed. She checked at least a dozen times as she was fumbling with her long, dark, and messy hair in the mirror. Sighing, she eventually set the brush down. Her hair was always going to be disagreeable; at least for a first impression she'd gotten everything else near perfect.

Exiting the bathroom, she heard the bell ring and turned her gaze to see Sakura walk through the door, wearing a dapper fedora on top of his usual outfit. He gave her an appraising look before sighing and shaking his head again, likely at the sorry state of the mop attached to her head.

"That'll have to do for now," he sighed out, gesturing her out the door. "Come on, we'll talk on the way. We're running a bit late."

* * *

Shujin Academy turned out to be in the Aoyama District. With the recent blockages in the line, she'd have to switch trains at Shibuya everyday for a while. Thankfully, her pass would cover the costs.

Arriving at the front gates, the school looked more or less how she'd imagined it to. Staring up at the front gates, the place seemed smothering in more ways than one. It was all squished together to fit into the tight cityscape yet it still stood imposing before her as if she'd be eaten alive here and spat back out. Completely the opposite of her old school back in Ueda which was spacious and seemed warm and inviting at first.

"Do me a favor and try not cause trouble. Especially here," Sakura said to her, not even looking in her direction. "If you get thrown out of this place, it'll reflect badly for the both of us. And, I'm sure you realize what it means for you."

"I'm not here to cause trouble," Akira answered him monotonously, feeling hollow again. "I just want to get through the year."

The man turned to look her in the eye and she stared back, any nerves falling into the pit of emptiness within her till he broke the gaze. "That makes two of us."

Once they were inside, it was a short walk to the principal's office. The best way to describe the man himself would be "adult baby." His clean-shaven head was just about the most rotund one she'd ever seen. And his tan suit certainly wasn't doing anything to hide any of his buttery figure.

Akira was a lot more interested in the woman standing next to him, who was apparently to be her homeroom teacher. Between her yellow-striped shirt, denim skirt, hastily-applied makeup, and short brown hair that was only marginally less bedraggled than her own, she had this look about her that said "I don't care about my job." Or maybe it was "I care about my job more than what I look like," considering the bags under her eyes and how tired she looked in general. Something about her just made the teenager want to give her a hug or at least tell Principal Baby here to give her a vacation.

As Sakura was making a move to sign some things, she figured she better pay attention to whatever the bulbous man had been rambling about for the past 10 minutes.

"So, just to reiterate, if you cause any problems for the school, you'll be immediately expelled," he iterated clearly. "Considering your situation, I expect you to behave with the utmost respect for our staff and your fellow students. Remember that there wouldn't be a single school that would accept you if you were to be discharged from here."

"I understand," Akira replied in a level tone, bowing deeply. "Thank you very much for taking me in."

He looked at her warily but seemed to nod in approval. Gesturing to the woman on his left, he stated, "She'll be your homeroom teacher for this year."

"I'm Sadayo Kawakami," the tired-looking woman introduced herself. "Here's your student ID."

She was handed a small plastic card which held her name but not her picture.

"The student handbook was included with the original letters sent. Make sure you read it and follow the rules as any trouble you cause will have you sent to the guidance office. In the event you do cause any problems, I won't be able to protect you."

"Or at least, that was the condition, right? Principal Kobayakawa?" Kawakami continued, sounding like she was doing a recitation.

"Exactly. She will be responsible for her own actions while she is held under probation here."

"Come by the faculty office when you arrive tomorrow, and I'll show you to your classroom," the woman finished, looking like she'd rather be anywhere else.

In spite of this, she gave another bow to be polite. "Please take care of me."

"If we're done here, I have my shop to get back to," Sakura interjected before any more could be said. "It's still business hours."

"Of course, Sakura-san." Kobayakawa responded with a firm nod. "Just make sure you keep an eye on her. We should be notified of any misconduct she commits outside of school."

"I've already made it abundantly clear what her situation is. I'll report anything I see. You can be sure of that."

"Very well," the tan-suited baby man ended the conversation. "Thank you for coming in today, Sakura-san, and I expect to see YOU at school tomorrow, young lady."

The last part had been addressed to her of course, which still annoyed her of how little people thought of her. Case in point being that she could hear perfectly well, Kawakami complaining about her presence in the class on the way out. That rattling feeling appeared in her stomach again, but she quickly pushed it down. She was used to people talking about her when her back was turned, as if she didn't even exist in the moment.

"They're treating you like a nuisance," Sakura commented, as they walked, with a tone that sounded a lot like exasperation.

"How much more could I really expect?" She shot back at him. "All they care about is my record."

"Your past will always find you, huh. To be clear, if you're expelled, I can't support you anymore. You're out of my store and on the train back to Nagano."

"Where I'll be put back in juvie until I'm sorted out, right?"

"Or your parents cut a new deal on your probation, but I don't see that happening."

The teenager just let out a long, resigned sigh.

"Let's go home."

* * *

Honking the horn wasn't making traffic move any faster, much to Sakura's anger. Not that it mattered much to Akira. She was staring out the window, lost in thought. His voice out of the blue brought her back to reality.

"So, school? You think you can manage?" he spoke quickly, frustration evident in his voice.

"I'm more worried about the grades than anything," she spoke truthfully. "It's a college prep school, so they'll be expecting high marks."

"And the people? You can handle them just fine, I'm guessing?"

The girl frowned, not appreciating his sarcasm. "No one should know about me for now. As long as that's true, I shouldn't have a problem dealing with anyone.

"Hmph. We'll see."

…

It was taking forever to get there.

…

The silence was stifling.

...

"Another train has just derailed at Shibuya Central. There will be subsequent delays across all timetables-"

"Ugh, another accident? This just won't end will it?"

She couldn't take it anymore. She had to say _something_.

"Why did you decide to take me in?" she kind of blurted out.

"That's a sudden question to ask," he remarked, somewhat amused. "Your mother knows me through an old college girlfriend of mine. Her and your grandfather cut me a deal to have you sent here on probation. You should already know this."

Akira remained reticent staring down into her lap.

' _Of course it's about the money,'_ she thought bitterly. _'Why should it be any different with him than my father?'_

The pair didn't say another word to each other for the remainder of the trip back home.

* * *

There was some savings included in the boxes her parents had sent which she promptly used a portion of to purchase a bath and some food from the convenience store. Sakura had cleared out a shelf in his fridge for her use and, while she couldn't touch the ingredients without his express permission, whatever she could afford that could fit was hers. Of course, the money was only enough for a month or two if she stretched it out, so she'd need a part time job soon.

They'd arrived home so late that Sakura didn't even bother opening. He'd answered a phone call from home and then left without a second thought. He even had to call her up on his antique rotary phone to tell her to flip the sign over. Thankfully, she managed to convince him to exchange numbers with her, so it wouldn't be a problem in the future.

Plopping down on the bed, she took out the journal again, scribbling a quick entry before bedtime again.

 _Journal entry 4/10/2016:_

 _I had a strange dream last night. Something about a prison, a puppet man, and a deal I probably shouldn't have taken. I don't really remember it that well now, but I have a feeling I'll be seeing it again somehow. Even though it's a dream…_

 _Went to Shujin to get registered today. Looks like they see me as garbage, unsurprisingly. At least my homeroom teacher is kind of cute._

 _I hope I'm earning Sakura-san's trust one way or the other._

 _They still haven't told me what to put here, so I'm just going to put whatever until I'm told to stop._

 _Signed: Akira Kurusu_

 **A/N: I kind of feel like I implied there wouldn't be original scenes and content in this story in my last Author's Note. Rest assured that's not the case; we'll be getting some next chapter in fact.**

 **Thanks for the favs and follows, and of course thanks for reading.**


	3. Tea, Twin-Tails, and Tension

**Disclaimer: SMT and the Persona Series is the property of Atlus**

"Speech" / _'Thoughts'_

' _So, the first day, huh?'_ Akira thought as she lay in bed, dim morning light streaming through her window. _'Time to go back… Do I even remember how to talk to people my own age?'_

A familiar red eye greeted her when she went to check the train schedule one more time. _'Thought I deleted that,'_ she tried to recall, swiping it into her bin again.

There'd been a lot of accidents lately, the latest of which occurring just yesterday, so she had to get up even earlier than normal so she could cut through Shibuya to get to Aoyama. Sighing, she got out of bed and did up her uniform as cleanly as she had the day before. It would serve her well to make just as much of a good impression on her fellow students and teachers as she had on the principal.

The smell of coffee beans and curry filled her nostrils just as she was throwing her book bag over her shoulder. Akira's brow furrowed as she'd heard Sakura come in earlier, but it was prior to business hours; certainly too early to be cooking. Heading downstairs, she was stopped by the man himself on her way to the door.

There was a fresh plate of curry accompanied by a cup of hot coffee on the counter. "Eat," he nodded at her.

The confused teenager looked at the meal calling to her empty stomach and then back at the man who made it. "Are you sure?"

"Better hurry up if you don't want to be late," he responded with a roll of his eyes.

"Itadakimasu"

The first bite made her eyes widen to the size of dinner plates. The spice was in that perfect sweet-spot between spicy enough and too spicy. It's as if he had somehow seasoned it perfectly to her tastes despite having just met her a day and a half before.

"The first reaction never gets old," he chuckled to himself, shaking his head in amusement. "Go ahead and try the coffee. They're made as a set."

' _Coffee isn't usually my drink,'_ Akira thought, staring into the steaming black liquid. _'He did make it for me, though…'_

One sip was enough to tell her that coffee still wasn't her thing, but surprisingly enough, the flavor managed to enhance the taste of the spice even further. As she finished off the rest of the meal, she felt she was beginning to understand Sakura's continued business a bit more.

"How was it?" he asked the young girl as he washed the mug and plate she'd used.

She hesitated for a moment before answering, trying to think of the most respectful way to voice her opinion.

"The curry was delicious… but I don't think I could drink the coffee without it."

"Well that's a surprise. Too bitter?"

The teenager shook her head. "No, I just grew up on tea. My grandfather became a master after he retired."

"He taught me many tricks… to help me relax," Akira mumbled, bad memories threatening to break out of the cell she'd locked them in.

Thankfully, Sakura didn't press further on the subject of her, for which she was very grateful. The tea on the other hand, he seemed much more interested in.

"Anything we could add to the menu?" There was a slight mocking quality to his voice, but since he'd asked…

"Not unless you want to sell this place and invest in a tea house," she replied in an equally mocking manner, teasing him a little before delving into the heart of the matter. "Though, with the proper tools and a good supply of tea leaves, I could probably improvise with your setup here."

A moment passed before he gave a non-commital grunt.

"You should get going. You'll miss your train if you stick around here any longer," the man pointed out, taking up her plate and mug. "Go ahead and flip the sign for me on your way out."

"Fine, fine."

Before she left, she bowed and thanked him. Hopefully it would convey her genuine gratitude instead of an attempt to curry favor with him. Sakura gave no reaction in her eyes, though she would have seen the ghost of a smile on his face if she would have been able.

* * *

The walk to school wasn't actually as bad as she thought it would be at first. Despite the crowds, which were somewhat suffocating compared to the open, fresh air of her hometown, she was able to transfer across the train lines rather quickly. The real kicker came in the form of the water pouring down from the heavens the moment she stepped out of the platform at Aoyama. It was almost as if God himself had decided her day should be ruined before it even began, especially since she hadn't had the forethought to bring along an umbrella.

Without any other choice, she covered her head with her bookbag and ran down the sidewalk, only stopping for a short rest under a nearby awning. _'Of all days it could rain, it really had to be this one?'_ Akira thought, leaning against the glass windows of whatever building she'd stopped in front of. All the time spent sitting around in juvenile hadn't done anything for her body, of that she was now sure.

While she was resting, she noticed someone else had run up under the awning beside her, also without an umbrella. She was wearing a school uniform, the same one as hers in fact, only she was wearing a white hoodie underneath her jacket and bright red tights. Her fellow student shook the water out of her hoodie a couple times before… she… removed it…

…

' _Wow…'_

Akira could feel her heartbeat quicken. It was like this girl had walked straight off the cover of a fashion magazine: pale smooth skin, piercing blue eyes, plump pink lips, and lustrous blonde hair pulled into twin tails, still in perfect shape even after being stuffed in a wet hood. She was a half, but that only seemed to make her look more exotic and enticing.

And she was also looking directly at the dark-haired girl. Giving an awkward smile and a wave.

"U-um, S-sorry," Akira blurted out, panicking. "You were just so…"

"Foreign?" the blonde offered, showing an air of melancholy about her that she hadn't previously picked up on.

"...Pretty," she corrected, blushing awkwardly. _'Real smooth cover there, idiot,'_ she cursed herself. _'If she wasn't thinking it before, she's definitely thinking it now.'_

Though there wasn't a hint of aversion on the blonde's face; just a look of surprise, as if she'd said something uncommon. But that couldn't be could it, with her looks?

"Uh, thanks."she answered, brightening up a bit. "You know, you don't look so bad yourself."

If the blonde had been shocked by her comment, then Akira was certainly twice as much by being told that. The redness of her cheeks threatened to climb to the peaks of her ears.

"You must be-"

"Except for the hair," the other girl finished with a sly smirk, cutting her off.

In a single instant the embarrassment was blown away with the stormy weather. The comment had been so quick and out-of-nowhere that she could help but laugh out loud, her companion joining in. A lot more comfortable, she reached up to touch her mop which was already froofing up from being exposed to the rain.

"I've given up on it completely," Akira admitted to her, letting out a sigh of exasperation. "No matter what, it just won't settle."

"Hmm…" The blonde tilted her head thoughtfully. "Maybe I could do something with it, like tie it into braids maybe? I'm pretty good about this sort of thing."

The dark-haired girl could only blink. "But we don't know anything about each other, do we?"

"Oh you're right!" was her response, as if the girl had only just thought of it. Sticking out a hand, she smiled at her. "I'm Ann Takamaki. What's your name?"

Hesitantly, she shook hands with her, feeling the touch of bare skin against her own for the first time in a very long time. "Akira Kurusu. Nice to meet you Takamaki-san."

"Same to you Kurusu-chan."

Despite her reddening cheeks at being referred to so affectionately, Akira allowed herself to smile. Perhaps the day wouldn't be so bad if she'd already made a sort of friend. It honestly felt refreshing just to have idle chit chat about her hair or any other mundane topic.

Reality soon returned, however, in the form of a car pulling up beside them. The window rolled down to reveal a man in his 30s with a squarish face and poofy, curled hair.

"Hey, it's pouring out!" he called out to them, or Ann specifically as his gaze was directed at her. "You girls need a ride?"

Looking back at Ann, she put on another smile, but something was off about it. It looked to wide, like she was stretching her face, like it was forced. The man's expression didn't sit right with her either. His face was kind enough, but there was something in his eyes that made her feel uneasy.

"Yeah, thanks!" Ann responded cheerily, running over and hopping into the front seat.

He turned back to her. "How about yourself?"

Weighing her options, jumping in a car with a man she didn't know was probably a very, VERY bad idea, even if Ann trusted him. At the same time, though, her discomfort and the man's strange look were really bothering her. That was all the more reason to follow along, right? To make sure she was okay.

"Sure, I'll come along," Akira replied, getting into the back seat. The blonde stared at her in shock.

Getting involved in a matter between strangers was stupid of her, especially after what happened last time, and she was sure Sakura would talk her ear off if he learned about this. However, Ann had been kind to her despite not even knowing her. It was only appropriate she respond in turn.

As the car moved away from the corner, she heard a yell from behind. Turning to peer out the window, she could see another kid wearing their school uniform. He had obviously dyed hair, spiked to the center of his head, forming some kind of faux-pompadour.

"Don't mind him," she heard the man say. "Sakamoto's a delinquent. Wouldn't be surprised if he didn't show up at all today."

Watching him fade into the distance, the dark-haired girl did feel some manner of sympathy. Delinquents weren't all bad people, as she was well aware.

"Anyway, I don't think I've seen you around the school before, so you must be new around here, right?" he asked her, setting alarm bells off in her head. "I'm Shujin's head coach and Wellness Instructor, Suguru Kamoshida."

"Thank you for the ride, Kamoshida-san," Akira replied, bowing her head slightly while carefully avoiding the question of her identity. He was a teacher, so he'd probably been told about her at this point. The less he knew about her right now, the better.

"Eh, it's really no problem," Kamoshida chuckled, eyeing her in the rearview. "By the way, you're both second years, right? I hear we're getting a transfer student to the second year with a criminal record."

The dark-haired girl spotted Ann shift in the passenger seat. "No way! What's it for?"

"Assault from what I've heard. Not only that, but I also heard that it's a young girl with a reputation for being promiscuous." There was a coiling feeling forming in her stomach as the curly-haired man winked at her in the mirror.

' _Oh God, please don't.'_

The car came to a stop as she noticed the front of the school out the windows.

"This is your stop," their driver said, dispelling the tension in the air. "The both of you be careful."

A quick open and shut of the doors and he was away. Akira breathed out a long sigh of relief that she didn't know she'd been holding.

"Sorry, about him," the blonde girl apologized, sounding exasperated. "He's a total pervert."

"Well, it's not like I'm not used to people like that…"

"Tell me about it," her twin-tailed companion sighed out. "Anyway, what class are you in?"

"Should be… 2-D, I think?" she replied, scratching her head through her soaking wet mop. "I know it's Kawakami-sensei's class."

Suddenly she could feel a grip around her right wrist. A wide grin met her sight, looking at the blonde girl.

"That's the same class I'm in. Come on! I'll show you the way!"

They were up the stairs and halfway to the door before her words caught up to Akira.

"W-Wait!" she called out, bringing the energetic girl to a halt. "They told me to go to the faculty office on my first day. Can you show me there?"

* * *

"See you in class, Kurusu -chan," Ann bid her farewell, making her blush again.

As Akira watched the girl leave, she shook her head in an attempt to rid herself of the embarrassment. In spite of the horrible awkwardness of her first meeting with someone else from her new school, she was glad to at least have someone who considered her a friend right off the bat. Even if she was a bit too energetic…and there was the Kamoshida thing.

Now she had her own situation to worry about, though. Taking a deep breath, she turned around and walked into the office.

"Oh, I'm surprised you actually showed up today."

Kawakami was just as cheerful as ever, it seemed. The poor teacher looked just as disheveled as she had the prior day if not moreso and unless she just one of those people who had dozens of copies of the same outfit, her clothes looked to be the same as well. In spite of her disdainful attitude, there really was something pitiful about her.

' _Is she having money problems…?'_ the bespectacled girl wondered.

"Unfortunately, I have some bad news for you," the weary teacher teacher said in a low and somewhat apologetic voice. "Your record was leaked to the school's public forum online. We don't know who did it or why. Almost everyone should know about you by now, if you haven't noticed already."

One sentence was all it took. One sentence to destroy whatever small amount of hope she had left of leading a peaceful life.

The emptiness returned in full force, caging her heart once more and snatching away whatever small happiness her newfound friendship had brought. Ann would find out about her without a doubt, and then she would surely come to hate her just like everyone else.

A sickening feeling formed at the bottom of her stomach and pins and needles stabbed across her skin. It was fear, the fear of anticipation, the fear of looking upon a beast right as it's about to bite. As much as she tried to push it down, taking deep breaths in a feeble attempt to calm herself, Akira could already feel the cold sweat forming on her brow.

"Hey, are you okay?"

Her eyes refocused to find Kawakami now standing and wearing a soft expression. A drop of sympathy in an ocean of malice hardly meant a thing, but if she was safe from judgement in this room at least, it was a comfort she would accept.

"I-I just… just don't know if I can do this anymore," the dark-haired girl admitted in a small shaky voice.

It was stupid, really. She'd been the subject of rumors before, she'd been accused of a crime, she'd been in juvenile hall. She should be thicker-skinned than this! Tougher than this! But even with all of that weight on her shoulders, she was still herself underneath it all. Still human. Just like anyone else, she was afraid of being hurt, especially going through it all a second time.

"You have to, Kurusu-san. I'm sorry, but you'll get thrown out if don't," the bedraggled woman said in a steady voice, sounding genuinely concerned for her. "I can't stop anyone from talking about you, but I'll do my best to protect you otherwise. Remember, you're under scrutiny so if you start any fights there's nothing I can do, but if someone tries to hurt you I'll see to it that they're punished. Understand?"

Wiping her forehead, she gave a slow nod. Kawakami's assurance only made her feel marginally better, though. If this was anything like home, whoever she was protecting herself from would just blame it on her anyway. While this one teacher might be on her side, she could trust that everyone else wouldn't punish her instead.

"My advice to you would be to keep the lowest profile you can for now. Eventually, they'll forget about you if you don't start any trouble," the weary teacher reassured her again, walking over to the door. "Now come on, let's introduce you to everyone. The sooner we get this out of the way, the sooner you can put yourself in the background."

"Can't we skip that part?" Akira muttered out pathetically, following behind her. "Just this once?"

"No can do. We'll both be in trouble if I don't. I can only promise you this is the one time you'll be the center of attention in my class."

The walk to the classroom felt like an eternity and waiting outside for Kawakami to announce her felt even longer. Finally, her moment came, and it was every bit as excruciating as she expected it to be walking into that classroom.

" _That's her isn't?" "She's the one who assaulted that guy!"_

 _"Why in the world would they let a delinquent like her in here?"_

" _I hear she carries a knife around everywhere!"_

 _"You know, I saw her coming in with Takamaki-san."_

" _I heard she also slept around a lot in her hometown..."_

" _Yeah, they say she was trying to force herself on that guy when she was arrested."_

" _Figures. Loose women stick together."_

" _You think we could get them to…"_

Desperately, she wanted to just bolt from the room, run back home, and lay in bed for the rest of the year, but just as she always had, she did her best to tune everyone out. She walked up to the board, wrote her name in the best scrawl she could manage and spent the rest of the time staring at her own feet. She couldn't even bring herself to look for Ann in the crowd, especially not after she'd probably just tarnished her reputation permanently.

She couldn't even open her mouth to introduce herself, not that there was much of a point. They all had made up their minds about who she was.

*Sigh* "Why don't you take a seat back there behind Takamaki-san?"

She'd have much rather sat across the classroom, but there was nothing for it. Someone tried to trip her on the way there much to everyone's amusement, though the student in question did receive Sensei's death glare. Ann wasn't even looking at her when she got over there, staring out the window instead; Akira took it as a sign that any chance of friendship they'd had was effectively over.

She was all alone again…

* * *

The rest of the day was, in a word, hell. Whatever sympathy Kawakami had decided to hold for her, she wasn't so lucky with the rest of the teachers in her lineup. Her English teacher, Chouno-san, seemed to have some beef with her simply because she was in Kawakami's class, so she was singled out for questions immediately. The woman apparently thought that 3 months in jail was actually GOOD for her memory. Similarly, Ushimaru-san, the Social Studies teacher, didn't do anything to stop people from openly talking about her, and he even threw a piece of chalk at her face when she couldn't focus, making everyone laugh at her.

By the time she got back to Kawakami's class for lunch, she couldn't take it anymore. She rushed to the one place she knew she could probably be alone in this situation without looking back.

Water continued cascading overhead as she huddled under the awning. As expected, the school roof was empty as no one would bother coming up here to hang out while it was raining. Head, buried in her arms, she felt hollow again, perhaps even more unbearably so than ever before. How desperately she wished the wind would just blow through her and lift her away to a place where she'd never be seen again.

' _Nothing's really changed has it?'_ she thought to herself. _'Rather than facing everyone like I should I'm still hiding away somewhere, wishing I could disappear.'_

' _I'm really, really pathetic aren't I?'_

"Akira!"

Her head snapped up. Ann was leaning out from behind the door to the roof, and there was another girl leaning her head out behind her as well.

…

…

…

After staring at each other for a few moments, she lowered her head again.

"What are you doing here?" the dark-haired girl mumbled out. "You don't want to be seen with a criminal do you?"

*plop*

Looking to her right, she blinked in surprise at seeing Ann take a seat right next to her.

"Don't be an idiot," the twin-tailed girl said quietly. "You looked like you wanted to die in there. How could you expect me to leave you be after that?"

"But we just met today! You don't know anything about me…"

"That doesn't matter." The other girl countered quietly, also taking a seat. "No one else does either, right? They're all just making up whatever they want to think, right?"

Only now did Akira really look at her. Honestly, she was rather plain-looking with her brown eyes and pitch-black hair tied into a ponytail. What stood out more where her injuries. Her uniform was the school standard, with the jacket removed entirely oddly enough, however there were bandages wrapped around her arms and a brace on her leg.

Moreover, while the girl's voice said something vaguely inspirational it was lacking in energy, and her face was full of uncertainty. It was as if even she didn't really believe what she was saying, which was admittedly something Akira could relate to.

"So?"

She challenged the girl's questions right away and beyond a startled look, she appeared to have no answer.

"So what if I decide to think that you're a good person?" Ann asked her with conviction, widening her eyes.

She'd probably be the first person to believe in her in a long time. Someone who wanted to be her friend.

…

…

…

"You're probably an idiot too, then.

There was but a moment of silence before she started laughing and, in spite of everything, Akira joined in. The troubles of the day were far from forgotten, but here it felt like they didn't matter so much at least until the period was up.

"Yeah, we're both idiots aren't we?" Ann chuckled out.

"I guess we are," she responded, giving a bitter smile. "So who's your friend?"

"Oh, this is Shiho Suzui, my best friend."

The quiet girl nodded at her. "It's nice to meet you."

"So," the twin-tailed girl started quietly, bringing the mood back down a bit. "What happened? Did the school really tell everyone about you?"

"No, that's not it," Akira explained, shaking her head. "Someone leaked my record online. They don't know who."

"W-who would… do something like that?" Suzui muttered out, raising Akira's eyebrow.

"I think it was Kamoshida. He looked like he knew something when we were talking to him this morning, Ann."

That caught the injured girl's attention alright. The poor thing looked like she'd been struck.

"Kamoshida? Ann, you weren't…"

The twin-tailed girl quickly started waving her hands wildly in the air. "NO! No, we just ran into him at the school gate is all." She sent a scowl Akira's way though for what reason, the dark-haired girl couldn't guess. "Still, it wouldn't surprise me if it was him. He's kind of the king of the castle around here."

Suddenly the air seemed to pulse and ripple as she heard a small voice speak from below.

" _Beginning Navigation."_

* * *

 **A/N: Credit goes to FlOrangey and his or her story "One Year on Probation" for inspiration here. It's basically a take on the plot of the game if the Metaverse and Personas didn't exist. You should check it out if you haven't already.**

 **Anyway, while I appreciate the game getting the action moving right from the start unlike the previous two Persona games, I always thought the whole "Do you regret your actions" bit when you first get Arsene would have been a lot better with the added context of a day or two at school with everyone judging you. Which, you know, has a lot more to do with the main character's life than getting attacked by shadow knights at a fantasy castle.**

 **So, I tried to pull something like that off by pushing the entry into the 'verse off by a few hours.**

 **Anyway, thanks for reading. We'll get to some action next time along with Fem!Akira's Persona, which will not be Arsene because that's boring.**

 **Once again, this story is cross-posted on AO3 now where the format is less rigid and doesn't screw up how people whispering is supposed to look.**


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